1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates broadly to the field of communications, and more particularly to a communication system and method for forming a project log.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many human endeavors can be “projectized,” that is, reduced to a systematic plan or design and undertaken as such. One example of a project is related to the construction industry, where a thing being constructed is conceptualized and reduced to a series of construction steps. Another example of a project is related to any service industry. For example, in medical-care services, a patient is diagnosed and treated according to a series of predefined medical steps.
One valuable aspect of projects is their characteristic of being able to be monitored and measured against a plan or design. For example, construction projects may be regularly monitored for progress toward completion of one or more construction plans. In one specific example, a superintendent of a construction project might monitor a project on a daily basis, and make a written entry into a log of his or her findings. In another specific example, a patient that requires extended medical care is monitored frequently, and his or her progress is memorialized in a written log known as the patient's record.
Various tools exist for managing projects. One example of such a tool is a computer-based software product called Contractor's Command Post™. A valuable feature of the Contractor's Command Post' product is, in addition to tracking and managing project resources, its ability to compile a project log for a particular project. The project log is accessible for retrieving, analyzing, and adding observation information about a particular. project. The project log provides useful information for fully managing a project that is completed step-by-step.
There are many mechanisms for forming and maintaining a project log. The simplest, and most common, mechanism is a written log, where a person who monitors a project makes a text-based entry into the log. Such written logs may be formed with a computer, or by hand with a pen and paper. Problems with a written log include the fact that text-based entry is tedious, leading to omissions in whole or in part. Hand writing, or even typing, can sometimes be difficult to comprehend and understand, and it is difficult to consolidate text entries into a master log file because some entries are misplaced, lost, or sometimes never made.
Another mechanism is to use a recording device for creating a log. The recording device may be a tape recorder or a video recorder, where the recording preserves a monitoring person's observations on a recording medium. Problems with conventional recording mechanisms are that a recording medium, such as a cassette tape, microcassette, or video cassette, can be lost or otherwise inaccessible. If they are accessible, it is usually only accessible to only one user or otherwise limited to a small number of persons who maintain a copy. Further, copies are difficult to reproduce and distribute effectively. Finally, conventional recordings are difficult to compile in a way that the recording media can be arranged in some logical, easily retrievable order.
What is needed is a system and method of forming a project log that leverages technological resources in a unique way, for efficient and cost effective recordation of observations that are related to a project.